ADVENTURES AT FRANKLIN

(photo cred: Carly Besh) Hey There!  So, I C E L A N D was the greatest ever! I seriously cannot overstate how awesome this Academic Travel was! We had a great group of students, the coolest country (literally.. haha) and as my first full-credit Travel I have to say, I give it a two thumbs up! I had my hesitations about meeting as an Academic Travel class twice a week the whole semester, but I felt so prepared to go to Iceland - I learned a ton beforehand, and I learned a ton while we were there! So it's a win-win-win situation! In the past, Academic Travel has been a partial-credit program at Franklin, but the university is phasing in full-credit travels, and I have to say that I am a fan! In the weeks leading up to the Academic Travel our class studied Iceland's culture, history and current environmental programs (since it is an environmental studies class) which meant that we were all prepared to ask good questions at the lectures in Iceland and really enjoyed talk...

Hello from Iceland!  I survived midterms (barely..) and I have a blog post full of study tips coming your way! But first, ACADEMIC TRAVEL!  Like I said, I'm in Iceland and it has been incredible! It's one of those countries that I never imagined I would have the opportunity to visit, but I am so glad to be here! We've been learning so much about Iceland this semester in class and I am pinching myself that I am finally here!  We arrived Saturday evening and had an amazing first night! First stop: the Blue Lagoon! Floating around in this geothermal hotspot was the perfect way to relax after the stress of midterms and a four hour flight. I could have happily spent a few more hours there! On day two we basically had to drive up the entire Western coast in order to reach the West Fjords of Iceland! It was a loooonnnnggg drive, but so beautiful. We made a few stops to go on quick hikes to see natural geothermal hotspots, craters, and of course, the sea! So ...

Welcome to another semester at Franklin! One of the best things about the Fall semester is that there is an incredible “Welcome to Franklin” program that lasts from Orientation Week until Academic Travel. It is called “Tutte Le Strade” meaning “All the Roads” in Italian - it is a take on the historical saying “All roads lead to Rome.”  Two years ago, as an incoming student, I remember being overwhelmed with how many fun activities there were to do during TLS! It seemed like every other day there was some kind of presentation, trip downtown, movie night, pizza tour, gelato party or weekend trip. It is madness! But oh so fun.  During my first semester there was not a single week before Academic Travel that I didn’t participate in some kind of fun TLS activity. It was a great way to meet new people , stay busy, learn more about Switzerland and have fun time!  Here is a copy of the TLS 2014 schedule so you can see for yourself!  My freshmen y...